Indonesian Muslims slate the "Caliphate" and ISIS: We need peace and coexistence
Jakarta
(AsiaNews) - Civil society and the
two largest Islamic organizations in Indonesia have roundly condemned the
Islamic State of Iraq and the
Levant (ISIS) and the actions of its leader, the "Sheik" Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Kiai Hajj
Malik Madani, a leading official
of the Nahdlatul Ulama (Indonesian Muslim organization with 70
million members), says: "We
need peace and harmonious co-existence,
not a caliphate. Our teaching is clear: no war among
ourselves or with other religions".
The reaction of the moderate Islamic
leader was sparked by the circulation of a YouTube video in which an unknown Indonesian Islamic guerrilla (who calls himself Abu Muhammad al-Indonesi) urges "Muslim brothers and sisters of the country" to join ISIS to create
an Islamic Caliphate in the Middle East. The
next step, he says speaking in
Bahasa, "will be to have a Caliphate even here."
It is not just the ravings of a provocateur. In mid-July 2014, more than a thousand people gathered at a mosque in Solo Baru (Sukoharjo
regency) to
attend a prayer meeting hosted by the Islamic Daulah
Support Forum. After
the prayer, those present declared their public support
for ISIS, claiming to be ready to
go to Iraq and Syria. Organizer Afif Abdul Majid,
explained that "not all of them agreed
to be 'initiated', but at least half
asked to be 'baptized' to support
the mission." He added that
in the coming weeks such a "baptism" will also celebrated
in Malang (East Java):
here, according to some sources,
on 25 July another 500 people gathered for a similar ceremony.
The Indonesian Foreign
Minister Marty Natalegawa
has denied that there are Indonesian militants in Iraq who have sided with ISIS, but
the anti-terrorism chief Ansyaad Mbai
wanted to emphasize that "any of our citizens involved with these activities will be severely punished. Those who go
to fight in the Middle East will lose their citizenship and be tried harshly".
Prof. Syafi'i Maarif,
a well-known professor of Islamic Studies and former president of the moderate Muhammadiyah, concludes: "The video that is circulating these days must be strongly condemned. Only a fool would choose
to join ISIS and its small groups of followers".
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12/08/2014
